1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to envelopes and more specifically to an envelope pull opener which may be sold separately from an envelope or included as part of an envelope.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
There are numerous patents which disclose envelopes which are designed to reduce the amount of effort required to open an envelope. Some of these patents include U.S. Pat. No. 1,176,640 to Barber, U.S. Pat. No. 3,653,585 to Kazaros, U.S. Pat. No. 5,505,376 to Kent et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 5,732,877 to Lee. None of these patents disclose offering envelope pull openers in bulk and applying the envelope pull openers to the envelopes of the user""s choice. Further, the above patents disclose a substantial length of tearing wire, string, strip or other tearing filament which must be adhered to the envelope. Adhering a substantial length of the tearing filament to an envelope makes user installation of a envelope pull opener more difficult.
Finally, none disclose the utilization of the various opener elements for decorative, promotional or advertising purposes.
Accordingly, there is a clearly felt need in the art for an envelope pull opener which may be sold separately and attached to an envelope of the user""s choice; an envelope pull opener which increases the probability that an envelope will be opened by a recipient; an envelope pull opener which makes it enjoyable to open an envelope; and an envelope pull opener which does not require a substantial length of the tearing filament to be adhered to the envelope. And an envelope pull opener in which the appropriate elements of the opening structures may be deployed to provide additional visual stimulation for decorative or promotional purposes.
The present invention provides an envelope pull opener which may be attached to an envelope of a user""s choice or included as an integral portion thereof. The envelope pull opener includes a pair of generally flat pull tabs and a tearing filament. A single pull tab is attached to each end of the tearing filament. A peel-off laminate label, covering an adhesive surface is formed on one side of the pull tab. Preferably, the other side of the pull tab is structured to have a logo, picture, or other graphical representation applied thereto. The pull tab is preferably round, but could be any other shape such as square or triangular, or, in fact, have any geometry whose borders circumscribes any object, word, picture or logo the sender may be interested in presenting.
In a second embodiment, the pull tab opener has a single pull tab on each end and an anchor tab attached somewhere along the length of the envelope fold, preferably at substantially the middle of the tearing filament. The anchor tab has an adhesive surface on a back thereof similar to the pull tab. In a third embodiment, a rigid envelope pull opener includes a first arm, a second arm, a pivotal connector, and a pair of pull tabs. A single pull tab is attached to an end of the first arm and to an end of the second arm.
In a fourth embodiment, a sliding envelope pull opener includes a single pull tab on each end of a stationary filament, a sliding filament, and a slide tab affixed to one end of the sliding filament. The other end of the sliding filament slides relative to the length of the stationary filament. In a fifth embodiment, a decorative pull tab is attached to a pull filament of an existing envelope or to the detachable portion of a perforated envelope. In a sixth embodiment, the pull tab is attached to a mini-letter opener.
The envelope pull opener is preferably installed in an envelope in the following manner. The material to be mailed is inserted into the envelope. The adhesive portion of the closure flap is wetted or the laminate label peeled-off. The tearing filament is placed in the fold between a closure flap and a front panel of an envelope. The pair of pull tabs are outside the envelope. The closure flap is folded over and sealed against a back panel of the envelope. The laminate label is peeled off the back of each pull tab, exposing adhesive material, and the pull tabs are pressed on to the closure flap or back panel of the envelope.
A first alternative of the envelope pull opener places one of the pull tabs inside the envelope. A second alternative of the envelope pull opener provides attaching one of the pull tabs to an inside of the envelope. The other pull tab is placed on a back or front of the envelope. A side of the envelope may be opened with the tearing filament.
A third alternative of the envelope pull opener is forming a slit in the envelope. One of the pull tabs is attached to the inside of the envelope at a bottom end. The other pull tab is inserted through the slit and attached to the back or front panel of the envelope. A fourth alternative of the envelope pull opener is attaching one of the pull tabs to the back of the front panel or closure flap. The other pull tab is attached to the back panel of the envelope.
In the second embodiment, the anchor tab is pressed on to the a back of the front panel or closure flap. Each end of the tearing filament is placed in the fold at each end of the envelope. In the third embodiment, the pivotal connector is attached to the back of the front panel or closure flap. The ends of the first and second arms are placed in the fold at each end of the envelope. The closure flap is sealed and the pull tabs attached to the front or back of the envelope.
In the fourth embodiment, one pull tab is attached to one top end of the front panel and the other pull tab is attached to the other end top end of the front panel. The sliding tab is preferably attached to the back panel at a center thereof. The sliding tab is slide in one direction and then the other to separate the closure flap seal. In the fifth embodiment, the pull tab acts as an attractive decoration and also provides extra leverage to pull the pull filament or separate the detachable portion from an envelope. In the sixth embodiment, the pull tab is detached from the envelope. The pull tab is pulled until the mini-letter opener is removed. The mini-letter opener is used to open the envelope.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an envelope pull opener which may be sold separately and attached to an envelope of a user""s choice.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an envelope pull opener which does not require a substantial length of the tearing filament to be adhered to the envelope.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide an envelope pull opener which increases the probability that an envelope will be opened by a recipient.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide an envelope pull opener which makes it enjoyable to open an envelope.
Finally, it is another object of the present invention to provide for the utilization of the various opener elements for decorative, promotional or advertising purposes.
These and additional objects, advantages, features and benefits of the present invention will become apparent from the following specification.